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It took John Barrymore to bring class to the American horror film, at least in the eyes of the industry. Dignified and virtuous as Dr. Henry Jekyll in this 1920 silent, Barrymore transforms into id incarnate as the lascivious Mr. Hyde. With almost no makeup beyond his gnarled, knobby fingers and greasy hair, Barrymore relies almost solely on a bug-eyed grimace, a spidery body language, and pure theatrical flourish. He tends to be hammy as the leering beast of a thug but brings a tortured struggle to the repressed doctor, horrified at the demon he's unleashed, guilty that he enjoys Hyde's unrestrained life of drinking and whoring, and terrified that he can no longer control the transformations. Martha Mansfield costars as his pure and innocent sweetheart, and Nita Naldi (the vamp of Blood and Sand) has a small but memorable role as the world-weary dance hall darling who first "wakens" Jekyll's "baser nature".
John Barrymore`s performance in this classic 1920 adaptation of Robert Louis Stevenson`s novel, caused many critics at the time to acclaim him the greatest screen actor yet. With virtually no make up and minimal camera trickery, Barrymore relied on his considerable acting skills and his ability to contort his features (to the extent of dislocating his jaw) in order to make the transformation from the handsome, respectable Dr Jekyll, to the hideous, debased Mr Hyde. A veritable tour de force...
John Barrymore